At the end of the couch
by MrsCuddles
Summary: A call from his mom brings Mike back to his hometown for Christmas and his thrown into a vortex of old, forgotten family dramas. But he's not left alone to face them: Paige is there, ready to support him and give him more than he'd expected. [ON HIATUS]
1. Call from the past

**Hello! If you're reading 'Palpitations', you've probably read about my "New Year's eve" one shot. Well, I'm not really good at them. In fact, I ended up writing a looong one (3 chapters). I don't know if I'm going to post it all yet lol But here's the first chapter. Enjoy!**

**- xo, Mel**

"Go, go, go, go!"

"C'mon Briggs!"

"Yo, Jakes, almost there!"

"He's gonna win!"

"Hell no, he is!"

Graceland had seemed like a though place to live at first: given the circumstances of when he had been sent there, Mike had always felt like the wrong piece of a puzzle he desperately wanted to be part of. Especially after realizing how cool and close they all were with each other.

He had never been a part of anything like that and he really wished to, so much.

Maybe it was because of their generous and loving personalities, the atmosphere of trust and brotherhood you could smell in the house, the fact that you could always have somebody to lean on.

Or maybe it was because of crazy fun nights like this.

It had all started off as a joke, but quickly turned into a serious matter: during Charlie's memorable and special Thanksgiving sauce night, Paul had jokingly remarked Jakes _bad_skills as wine sommelier after he had tasted the -even Mike had to admit that- horrible supermarket bottle he had brought home that night.

They started bickering about how one was better than the other at tasting and drinking, up until the point Jakes challenged Briggs to a fair '_beer contest_', which apparently meant _war_ to them.

They were both at 8 bottles now and time was running out: Mike had set the end time of the chronometer of his rather expensive diving watch at 15 minutes and they were slowly coming to an end.

Throwing his empty bottle away, Paul reached for his 9th, his eyes well set on Jakes, who was close on his tail, as he drank the last drops out of his beer.

"1 minute left!" Mike shouted, trying to drown out all the other voices screaming at the two.

Jakes titled his head back and opened his mouth wide, pouring the bottle empty down his throat; Briggs reached for his tenth beer, grinning victoriously.

As Mike prepared himself to shout at them to stop, his phone started buzzing in his pocket: keeping his eyes on the watch, he picked it out and glanced quickly at the screen.

His smile faded and his face fell.

Paige, who had been at his side trying to be a fair referee -but clearly wasn't, as she kept cheering for Paul-, looked back at him, frowning.

"Mike," she turned to him. "You alright?"

As he heard his name being called, he nodded at her absentmindedly and turned to walk outside on the beach porch. "Yeah, yeah. Sorry, I've got to take this…" He whispered more to himself than to her.

Everybody looked at him, silence taking over the place.

"Hey! Where you goin' man?! We need ya here!" Johnny screamed after him, pointing at the two agents still drinking, even though their eyes were sending interrogative stares at the rookie outside. Mike held one finger in the air, as he closed the french doors to have some privacy. '_Sorry'_, he mouthed.

"What's wrong?" Charlie asked Paige, who shrugged.

They all watched, as the young agent leaned on the railing and started fidgeting on his place. It seemed like his feet had a mind of their own, as he talked on the phone: he was nervous, so nervous Paige started to think he had been assigned with another investigation on Paul.

Or even worse, somebody else in the house. Her guessing was interrupted by Jakes head bumping loudly on the table.

"I think I'm gonna throw up."

**X**

Mike sighed, as he eyed the screen of his phone. This was a problem. Not one of his biggest problems, but it was definitely something he'd prefer not to deal with.

This was why he never called or skyped. This was why Graceland sounded even more a better option than DC.

Sliding the french doors open, he went back inside. The kitchen had been tidied up, the bottles were gone and both Paul and Jakes were lazily thrown on the same chairs he had left them in; only, their legs were now spread open and their heads dangled back. They were lucky to still be able to think properly because to him, they looked totally wasted.

At that exact moment, Johnny came back into the kitchen with an apple in his hand. He held a hand up, greeting him as if he hadn't seen him in years; that made both Charlie and Paige -who had been too busy with the trashcans to notice he had come back- turn around.

"Mikey Mike! 'Sup, man? You seemed a little off back there!" Johnny pointed to him with his head. "Who was that?"

Mike rubbed the back of his neck, not missing a worried glance from Paige. She had probably started making up stories into her mind about how he was going to become a rat again.

'_No, never again.'_He thought.

"My mom", he murmured. "She wanted to wish me a happy Thanksgiving." He slapped his phone back and forth into his hands, ready to drop the bomb. "… and invite me back home for Christmas."

Behind him, Paul laughed, holding his hand up. "Mama's boy!" He screamed, making Jakes snicker on his side. They high fived, earning an irritated glance from Mike.

"Paulie, shut up!" Charlie exclaimed, crossing her arms and looking at the mortified agent. "You plan on going?"

Mike shrugged, not meeting her eyes. "I don't know."

"Well, I think the real question here is… you have a mom!? We've always thought you were scientifically designed and created in a lab or shit like that." Johnny said, with his mouth full, as he took a bite at his apple.

"That's… disgusting, John. Close your damn mouth!" Mike yelled at him, squinting his eyes at the sight of apple juice drooling at the corners of his mouth. The Mexican agent grinned. "See? Too much of a two goody shoes! That's not human!"

"Oh shut up, Johnny! Let him be!" Paige slapped him on the back of his neck, making him wince. It worked, though, because he went to sit down next to Jakes and finish his apple in silence. She turned to Mike. "What does she know?"

"Not much. She knows I'm a fed, but she thinks I was sent over here for a desk job. She doesn't know I'm an undercover agent." He confessed. "…and she doesn't know about you guys nor Graceland. She thinks I live with my girlfriend."

Paige raised her eyebrows. "She thinks you live with… Abby? But it's been over for what? 5 months now?"

"No! I've never even mentioned Abby. She overheard Charlie when I last spoke to her two weeks ago and I had to come up with something." Mike promptly said. He didn't even know why he felt the need to clarify that. He just did.

"So she asked you to bring her along." Charlie pointed out and he nodded.

"I could tell her we broke up, though."

Paige looked thoughtful for a minute, before she spoke up. "No, you can't. It'd mean either you or she decided to break up around Christmas time. If she's as of a goody two shoes as you are, she'd probably kick you out of your own house." She reasoned, looking at him with an amused expression. "I could be your imaginary girlfriend for a week, Mikey."

Crossing her arms, Paige watched as Mike looked at her with slightly widened eyes: he shifted uncomfortably, sliding his hands into his back pocket to give himself a confident posture; it only made him cuter at her eyes. Sometimes he looked just like an innocent boy; something she rarely saw anymore. '_Rookie_', she thought, hiding a smile.

"Um." Mike stuttered, masking it by trying to act like he was actually thinking about it. Truth was, he desperately wanted to accept her offer. Hell, from the very first moment he had hear his mother's offer, he had wished she would come up with that.

He had always had a huge crush on Paige and, although knowing she would never even look at his way, seeing as she only considered him a rookie or some kind of little brother, he knew that he had to take any chance to be closer to her.

Spending an entire week with her on the other side of the country, just the two of them, formally being boyfriend and girlfriend, was the greatest chance he had had up until now.

"Are you sure? I mean… it's pretty cold out there right now."

Paige scoffed, raising an eyebrow. "Do I look like a pretty doll to you? I can deal with a little cold, Levi."

He shook his head. "No, of course not. I mean- you are pretty, just not weak pretty, tough pretty- whatever." He tried to correct himself, but soon decided to shut up when he saw her face trembling with held back laughter. Just like everybody else's in the room.

Mike closed his eyes, irritated. When he reopened them, he puffed his chest out and straightened his back, trying to act nonchalant.

"I'm up for it if you are." He concluded, fixing his eyes into hers.

Charlie smiled smugly at Johnny, as he grinned, winking back at her. '_The only ones not knowing about those two are those two.'_

Paige uncrossed her arms and held her hand up, walking closer to Mike. She patted his face with her other hand, waiting for him to give her an high five. When he reluctantly did, she smirked, winking at him.

"Let's do this, _baby._"


	2. Roots before branches

**Hello! And happy Boxing day! I forgot to thank lakergirl4life for encouraging this. I'm not really proud of this, since I haven't had time to give it a second and third read, but here you go. I also forgot to say this takes place after Season 1 and well, obviously Mike chose to stay in Graceland over going to DC ;) Thanks to all those who reviewed, favorite and read! Enjoy! **

**-xo, Mel**

Paige Arkin was a _caligirl_. She was used to beaches, surfing, sun and occasional rainstorms, especially at this time of the year. She hated what she wasn't used to.

And right now she was hating herself for getting involved with this.

"I told you it'd be freezing out here, Paige. I don't know why you're even complaining." Mike told her, as he kept his eyes fixed on the road.

Their plane had landed in Arlington at 11AM and they had spent two hours stuck in the Christmas traffic to get to his house, which was only 40 minutes away from the airport: it hadn't been a smart move flying in on the 24th, seeing as they were both beyond stressed and tired of being closed up for so long in the SUV they had rented.

Paige rolled her eyes.

"But you didn't tell me it'd be _this_ cold. I mean, snow?! Really?! How am I supposed to survive that?"

She hugged herself, rubbing furiously at the sleeves of her brand new coat - it was beyond Mike's knowledge how a person could own so many clothes, yet not even one good, warm coat. Or anything that resembled appropriate clothes for a trip out in the cold mountains. Surely, she had been out of California sometimes, right?

He chuckled, shaking his head.

"Are you trying to make me say something cheesy? As in _'don't worry babe, you're hot enough to warm both of us up'_or something like that?"

Paige looked daggers at him, before a tense silence took over the car. Both of them trying to hold their laughs back. Giving up, she let it out, holding her stomach. Mike followed soon after.

"Jeeze, Mike! That was the worst cheesy compliment I've ever heard!"

He squeezed the steering wheel into his hands, trying to calm himself down a bit, and briefly glanced at her. He nodded.

"Yeah, it was!"

"You could've just said I always look good, even in these suffocating clothes." She reached under her coat, scratching her lower belly. "And itching sweaters. Damn it!"

"Don't - don't do that, it'll only get worse. Trust me, I know." Mike's laugh faded into a smile, as he indicated that he was turning and pulled into a narrow road that ended uphill; terraced houses at both sides. "Many years of experience…" He trailed off, as his eyes adjusted to the Christmas lights blinding him over his window shield: he struggled to keep the car on going, due to the slippery ice on the asphalt.

Paige sat up straight, examining the grey and white street outside. "Is this your neighborhood? Where you grew up?"

Mike nodded, silently. She took into his features: his face was calm, almost quite resigned to the whole situation. Like he had to be there, but didn't really wish to. And yet, she had thought he missed the East coast.

There was something he wasn't telling her, judging by the way he tapped his fingers on the steering wheel; the music on the radio turned down so low it felt like a distant melody. Suddenly, he pointed at a building on the left side of the road.

"That's my old high school." He confessed. Paige smiled: it was a plain, grey structure that resembled the headquarters back in LA. Maybe he was destined to become an FBI agent, after all.

"It seems like a nice place."

"Oh no, trust me. It isn't. It's just like any other high school, if not worse." Mike hastily said, giving her a side glance.

Nodding, she took into the bare trees covered in snow in the playground they had just passed. She could clearly see a 5 year old Mike Warren running around, playing with his small friends. Chasing '_bad'_ boys and '_arresting_' candy dealers.

She smiled, as he sped up, ready to take them uphill.

"You live at the end of the road?" Paige asked, sinking into her seat to get more comfortable.

Mike nodded, his eyes glued on the road in front of him. She snorted.

"Are you going to be like this for the rest of the week? I need to know stuff you _supposedly_ told me as your _girlfriend_; or are you purposely sabotaging this so you can go back to LA? Might as well have said no in the first place."

Crossing her arms, she stubbornly stared at him. He looked at her with the corner of his eyes, sighing.

"I'm sorry," he laid his hand on her left knee. "There's just not much to say. I had a life here that doesn't belong to me anymore and that's it."

Paige nodded, skeptically. "Well, tell me about your family then? Who I'm going to meet, what they do, all the '_nothing but great things I've heard from you_'?"

She saw Mike biting the inside of his cheek and her ears perked up: he was definitely hiding something. Grabbing his hand that rested on her knees, she dramatically got into his face and gulped, faking shock. "NO! Johnny was right? You came out of an experiment?!"

Mike rolled his eyes, sending her an annoyed glance.

"Funny, Paige. Really funny." He fake laughed, pushing on the gas pedal as he felt the SUV sliding backwards. Paige held onto the door handle.

"My mom's a retired nurse at the local hospital, her name's Patricia. My dad's an engineer, he worked in a private company in DC - used to travel a lot. His name's Derek, but he doesn't really talk; he was barely at home anyway throughout all my life here, so you won't hear from him that much. I have two brothers and one sister-"

Paige's face broke into a smile, pinching his cheek and cutting his words off.

"Aww, you're a big bro!" She exclaimed. Mike cringed, prying her hand from his face.

"More like a lil' bro. To all of them!" He said the last word with force, as he caught Paige's wrist in the air, to stop her from pinching his cheek again: he was starting to think she had a thing for cheeks, because of the amount of times she'd done that to him and almost everybody else in the house.

"You're the baby!" She chuckled, clapping her hands in a mocking manner. Mike hid a smile.

"Yep. Mascot of the house - just like at Graceland." He murmured, resuming his briefing on the background of his family. "Eric is a bus driver, married with two kids and a third on the way. His wife's name's Vanessa. He's the oldest. Then there's my sister, Mary. She's a flight assistant, she travels a lot. She was living with some pilot dude at some point - I think his name was Steve? And then there's Greg, he's five years older than me. I don't know exactly what he's doing right now. Probably getting wasted every night with a different girl."

There was something weird in his voice when he talked about his family. It wasn't shame, no; and it wasn't arrogance either - he sure seemed to be the only one among them to have a '_special'_ job, but as humble as Mike was, he wouldn't rub that in their faces.

It was more like melancholy and resignation, as if he really thought he didn't belong into his family anymore. She was about to ask him about that, when he suddenly turned left, pulling into a neatly shoveled driveway.

"We're here," he said, avoiding her eyes: he was staring at the house in front of him. A brown, three story victorian house, with wooden carvings decorating the white windows and porch. It was half covered in snow, but Paige could clearly see its beauty: it was a typical dream house, where you would want to build a family and have your children running around, giggling and playing. She smiled, another image of a young Mike flashing into her mind. Judging from what she was looking at right now, she perfectly understood why he had been brought up as such a good guy.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the loud clack of her door: she was so caught up into her reflections that she hadn't realized Mike had got out of the car and walked to the other way to open her door. '_Golden_ _boy_', she thought, grinning. She took his extended hand, hopping out.

"Thanks!" Patting his cheek, Paige laced her fingers through his, trying to ignore the brief spark she felt when he flashed her his charming smile and tugged her along with him.

She liked how easily Mike could jump from showing one emotion to another; they'd always make fun of him because of that, but deep down they all envied this side of him. She couldn't help but think about how smooth and warm his hands were, comparing them to all those casual men she usually hooks up with. It felt nice; he felt nice.

When they reached the doorstep though, his grip tightened on her hand. Looking back at him, she noticed his tense figure: he was staring right ahead of him, but his jaw was clenched tight and his back was stiff.

"Hey," she whispered, locking eyes with him. "I'm here," she gave him a small, reassuring smile.

He nodded, nervously, right before the door opened. Mike licked his lips and put on the best smiling face he had.

"Hi mom."

**X**

Paige was never going to forget that squealing sound, nor the blow she had felt when Mike had been practically snatched from her; their hands snapping away from each other's. She took a step back, surprised, as a nice, blonde woman pulled him towards her chest, throwing herself at him.

"Mikey!" She screamed, her arms squeezing the life out of him. Mike chuckled.

Paige crossed her arms, stepping aside from the scene: she could clearly see how Mike had missed this woman; he had been bomb rushed by her over expansive personality, but the way he held her in his arms and his loving strokes at her hair showed perfectly how much he cared for her.

"Mom… mom! I can't breathe!" He kept chuckling, slightly pulling away.

"Sorry," the woman half released him, to dry her eyes. Mike touched her cheek, smiling.

Paige's heart clenched at the scene.

"I can't believe you're home!"

Chuckling, he gave her another hug. He murmured something into her ear that made her laugh and pull away instantly, slapping his chest: the smile on Mike's face was indescribable. He held her hands for a sec, before he stepped back to take Paige's hand he had been teared away from minutes before.

"I'd like you to meet somebody…" he trailed off, winking at the young woman beside him. He turned back to his mom, pulling Paige closer to him and resting a hand on the middle of her back. She smiled kindly at the older woman, strangely feeling self conscious: his mother was perfect. Yes, she was a middle aged woman, but her face was beyond beautiful. She had beautiful, bright blue eyes and full lips, just like Mike's: now she got whom he had inherited his looks from.

"Mom, this is Paige." Looking down at her with a mischievous stare that almost made her laugh, Mike smirked smugly. "My girlfriend."

"Hi, Mrs Warren. It's a pleas-" She didn't get to finish her greeting that she was tore away from Mike just like he had been moments before: his mom engulfed her into a big hug, rubbing furiously at her back.

She could feel Mike snickering behind her. '_I'm going to kill him_', she thought.

"What's with the Mrs? Call me Patricia, dear!" Paige awkwardly patted her back, forcing a smile: it's not like she didn't appreciate the sudden burst of affection, she simply wasn't used to this.

When Patricia released her, she caressed her face for a brief moment and took her hands in hers, taking a step back to get a full glance at her.

Paige was definitely feeling self-conscious right now.

"You didn't tell me she was _this_ pretty, Mikey!" She scolded him, patting Paige's hands. "Oh my God, she's stunning!"

Mike laughed, throwing his arm around her shoulders and kissing the side of her head. Paige giggled childishly, putting on her best girly facade.

"That's what I tell her everyday, mom." He cheekily said, knowing full well that the DEA agent was probably trying hard not to roll her eyes.

"You better do, son! Come on in, everybody's here already. Let's introduce her to the rest of the family!"

As Mike's mom turned her back to them, Paige punched him in the side; the blow making him silently yelp out in pain.

'_What_?' He mouthed.

'_Stop it_!' She mouthed back, following the woman.

She took into the interior of the house: it was just like she had previously imagined. Sober, but full of knick-knacks accumulated over the years. On the left wall, right next to the door, she could see tons of family portraits and certificates.

As she passed the self portraits of each member of the family, she wondered which one belonged to Mike; although, she could swear she had recognized his unmistakable, magnetic eyes that could make any girl swoon. Paige herself had been struck by the electric baby blues the first time they had met, but he didn't have to know that.

As they reached the entrance to the main living room, where she could hear many voices and laughs, Mike yelled back at them: she turned around, yet his mom didn't seem to mind. It was probably an old habit of his that belonged to his _old_ life, like he had said before.

"You go, mom! I'm going to bring the luggage in first!"

Paige's eyes widened and she shook her head at him, motioning with her hand to join her instantly: she was the one doing a favor to him; if she had to be eaten alive by his relatives, he had to stay by her side.

Mike grinned sheepishly at her, puckering his lips and sending her an air kiss. He quickly turned around, running back out before she could march towards him and drag him inside.  
>'<em>Dick<em>.' She swore in her mind and joined his mother who was waiting for her with a sweet smile plastered on her lips.


	3. As close as hands and feet

**Thanks to all those who reviewed, favorited and read this. I was planning to finish it by New Year's Eve, but due to my trip and many other things, I couldn't. Honestly, i'm thinking of cutting out a lot of stuff since I've given it a few second reads and it just doesn't feel right nor good enough to me.**

**Thank you again! Enjoy :)**

**- xo Mel**

**X**

**"**So… Paige. How did you two meet?"

Mike eyed the blonde agent sitting next to him carefully, trying to guess her next answer. They hadn't talked about what they were going to say and now, he was regretting it.

They had only been there for a few hours, but his family had already welcomed her with open arms; which kind of scared him. Knowing his mom and, most importantly, his sister, they were going to try and extort as many things as they could from her. _The perks of being away for too long_.

Paige, on the other hand, hadn't been bothered by it; they were actually really nice people, easy to talk to and very respectful of her spaces. Of course, they were throwing some questions here and there about Mike's new life on the west coast, but as for now nothing major had come up and she had found out many things about his life in Virginia.

Eric, the eldest, could easily pass for his twin brother, even with their 13 year age gap: same dirty blonde hair, same defined jaw and same skin tone. The only thing that made them look different were the eyes: Eric's were dark green, something that he evidently took after their father - as Mike had previously predicted, the man hadn't said more than a '_hello_' to her and kept on reading his newspaper.

He had been very respectful towards her, standing up to shake her hand firmly, almost in a professional kind of way. '_It must be a Warren thing,'_ she had thought, remembering how kind of stuck up Mike had been when he had come to Graceland.

His wife, Vanessa, was a beautiful brown haired woman, with caramel eyes and the sweetest smile: although seeming to be very shy, she had shaken her hand kindly and even let Paige touch her growing belly. It had been kind of awkward for her at first, seeing as she had just met the woman, but it turned out to be a very delightful experience: a little foot had stuck out as soon as she had touched it. However, she had yet to see their other two children, sleeping upstairs. '_It's a rare event, actually. The ride must have worn them out._' Eric had playfully assured her.

On the other hand, Mike's sister -10 years older than him- was everything but shy: she had grabbed Paige by the shoulders and pulled her into one of the biggest, bone crushing hugs she had ever received, taking her by surprise. It had had something to do with Mike not being used to bring girlfriends over very often or something like that.

Bright blue eyes, long chestnut hair and slim figure. She wasn't as tall as her brothers and slightly shorter than her, but she had a rather toned body, a sign that she liked to work out and go for runs just as much as Mike did. She was the most talkative out of the three, asking her every sort of question and also, sharing details about her life: she had just broken up with her boyfriend, which apparently had been a good thing; in Eric's surprisingly not so gentle words, '_the guy was a prick_'.

Paige, sitting on the left end of the couch, smiled at Mary on the other end, and squeezed Mike's knee; he nuzzled her hair, his arm stretched out behind her.

"It's not really that big of a story, actually. We met at his work." She explained, crossing her legs: the furry boots she had put on earlier brushing against his calf. Mike nodded, twirling a strand of her hair around his index finger.

"Oh, you're a federal agent too?" Mike's mother asked, sipping hot tea from her cup.

Paige faked a giggle, much to Mike's amusement; he snorted, earning a playful punch on his thigh from her.

His dad lowered the newspaper, suddenly interested in the conversation. Oddly enough, she felt like his father didn't approve of his job. Maybe that's why Mike had been so reluctant to go.

"No, I'm actually an interpreter. I was there just for a case." She replied, glaring at him. "Apparently, it'd be impossible for me to be a _fed_."

Mike laughed, playing along, and kissed her temple. "C'mon, look at you. You wouldn't survive, not even for a day."

"Oh shut up Mikey, she's as much of a badass as you are!" Eric interjected from his brother's side, ruffling his hair; he pushed his hand away.

"I don't know if I should take that as a compliment or…" She bit her lip, teasing him. He turned to her, raising his eyebrows.

"Don't push your luck, _baby_. I can still make you sleep on the couch." Mike threatened her, a dazzling, challenging look in his eyes.

Paige patted his cheek, staring back at him. "Sure thing, _baby_."

He nuzzled her hand with his nose, proceeding to bite her palm jokingly; Paige saw his mother looking at the two with a loving expression on her face, as she giggled, trying to push his face away.

Mike was her special one, she could feel it. Not that she didn't love his brothers and sister, but she could clearly see the look she reserved to him; after all, he was her baby, being the last to be born.

He had been a '_surprise_', she had told Paige before: they hadn't planned more than three children, but one day she had got back her monthly blood tests and found out that he was coming. That's why he had so many years apart from his siblings.

But he wasn't a mistake: if anything, he had been a blessing, as he had given her many satisfactions and reasons to be proud of him. '_Dating a nice girl like her_' being the last one.

Chuckling, Mike looked at the clock: they had been talking for hours and it was almost time to set the table and enjoy their Christmas eve dinner. His face turned into a hard expression, as he looked over at his mom and held Paige's hand away from his mouth; for a brief moment, he went back to be that serious and sad Mike she had been with during their ride from the airport.

"Isn't Greg coming?"

Paige saw his mother release a resigned sigh, putting her cup down; Mike didn't move his eyes from her.

"Yes, sweetie, he is. But I'm sure he won't mind if we start without him." She stood up to collect their abandoned cups and moved towards the kitchen. "So, you were saying that you met at work?"

Paige felt Mike go stiff, his jaw clenched tight. Something was definitely wrong; she started rubbing his thigh soothingly, sending him a questioningly glance to which he replied with a dismissive squint of his eyes.

"Yes. They needed me there for an Ukrainian case. I was running late for the meeting and next thing I know, I'm literally splattered on him." She quickly made the story up, earning a genuine chuckle from Mike: it was unbelievable how easily she could change his mood; his crush had definitely not gone away and he knew that it most likely never would.

Mary mimicked him, giggling. "Seriously?"

Paige nodded. "I ran by the vending machines just in time for him to turn around and bam, the rest is history. I should be thanking my clumsiness if I'm here with you right now, guys."

As they all laughed, she shared a knowing smile with Mike, whose hand came up to stroke her hair and push her head on his shoulder, where she leant patting his chest.

"And my white blouse, even though I had to throw it away. It was my favorite." She pouted.

Mike nodded, squeezing her side and kissing her crown. "I literally spilled my coffee all over her front."

His words came out absentmindedly and apparently, Paige wasn't the only one who had noticed that his eyes were fully set on his mother, following her movements as she disappeared into the kitchen: the room had went silent, even though both Mary and Eric had politely put on sweet smiles when she had looked at them quizzically. The only one who seemed to be as unaware of what was going on between them was Vanessa, who gave her a puzzled nod.

Mike's father hid behind his newspaper, going back to his readings.

**X**

Paige was having a hard time recognizing Mike.

Of course he had his weird times, but she had never seen this side of him. Even when he had been investigating Briggs and almost burnt Graceland.

She thought he'd been at ease at his childhood home, with his family, the safest place you could ever dream of being, but the way he was acting right now made her rethink a lot of things.

The dinner had been perfect, his mother's cooking was beyond paradisiac: Paige congratulated her own mind for coming up with the idea of being Mike's fake companion, because she had tasted some of the best food she had ever eaten in her whole life.

Mike had given her small smiles, when she had made appreciative comments about it while they ate, nodding and spending a few words to agree with her, but by the way he had kept playing with his food on the plate, she knew his mind had been somewhere else.

She was pretty sure it had something to do with Greg, his brother that hadn't showed up yet; he hadn't properly smiled since he had mentioned his name.

Well, until now.

As a family tradition, they were all going to see the annual Christmas play, which happened to be "A Christmas Carol". Since it wasn't very far from their house, they had decided to have a little walk, to breath into the fresh night air and relax after the huge dinner. However, '_fresh_' was way too reductive: it was freezing.

Paige was walking side by side with his sister, talking about everything and nothing, but her eyes were glued on Mike, who was a few steps ahead of them, playing with his two nephews: Autumn, a beautiful 6 year old child that was the exact replica of her mother, and Josh, 4 years old, blonde hair and blue eyes, as hyperactive as his young uncle.

Mike reached down to throw his nephew up in the air, making spaceship sounds as he sped up his walking, his niece trying to catch up with him and cling to his leg. She smiled at the sight.

She was so into it that she didn't even pay attention to what Mary had been saying until she heard a question directed at her. She tried to pull herself together and smiled, rubbing her hands to warm them up; she sent Mary an apologetic smile, as a puff escaped her mouth.

"Sorry… what did you say?"

Mary followed her eyes, falling on her brother; a knowing smile plastered on her face.

"Doesn't matter. I guess my brother's way more entertaining, isn't he? You've been staring at him all night." She nudged her side. "Don't worry. It'd be weird if you didn't." Holding her hands up, she cut Paige off before she could try to defend herself.

"I guess you caught me." Paige gave up, sliding her hands in her pockets and looking down.

She had to admit that going under as Mike's _girly_ girlfriend was turning out to be easier than she had initially thought: after that kiss he had stolen from her months before, she had started looking at him under a different light. He wasn't the clumsy and awkward rookie she had been messing with from the start. He was just… Mike. And she liked it. Maybe a little too much than she should.

"He really likes you, you know?" As if she had been reading her thoughts, Mary's words startled her. '_She is _so_ Mike's sister_'.

The woman nodded, looking back at her brother. "I can see it in his eyes. When he was a kid, he had this amazing sparkle in his eyes that could cheer anybody up. I remember when I broke up with my first boyfriend, I was a mess - like an utterly, over depressed mess."

As she chuckled at the memory, Paige's eyes stared at her face: maybe she wasn't the only one thinking about how Mike had changed. She might not know Mike the undercover agent, but she certainly knew his old self and could compare it to the man he was now.

"He was 5 at the time, barely knew what a boyfriend was… but he was the only one able to cheer me up. All I had to do was look at him and his goofy smile and I was suddenly healed. He lost that sparkle little by little during his teenage…" Mary trailed off, her face and eyes turning stormy. Paige was about to ask why, when she turned to her, a serious and gentle tone in her voice. "But when he looks at you, it lights up again."

Paige's stomach fluttered; she saw the same determined look she had seen many times in Mike's eyes before. It pained her to lie to her like that, seeing as she really cared for her brother's well being, but the feeling she had felt when Mary had heard those words made her reconsider everything all over again. Was she really lying?

"Hey!" Mike's once again happy voice rang into her ears, as he approached them and stood between the two, jokingly pushing his sister away. "Enough with the interrogation. I'm kidnapping my girlfriend now, if you don't mind."

Mary stuck her tongue out, punching his arm. "Whatever, lovebirds!"

As Mike reached out to poke her side, she ducked away, skipping to catch up with their older brother.

He chuckled to himself, as Paige hooked her arm with his and leant her head on his shoulder. He kicked a piece of ice, walking silently next to her.

"What were you two talking about?" He asked, a worried tone in his voice she couldn't quite understand where it came from.

"Sparkles,"

"Sparkles?"

Paige nodded, smiling to herself as a certain episode Mary had told her before came up into her mind. She slowly pulled her arm away from his, trying not to let him notice, as his eyes scanned the two kids running around in front of them; a genuine laugh escaping from his lips as the little one fell flat on his butt and got up as quickly as he had fell to chase his older sister.

"Huggies." Paige whispered into his ear, making him stop dead in his tracks at the sound of his very much old nickname. He looked at his sister down on the road and then back at her, stuttering.

"H-huggies? She-"

As she nodded, biting her lip to hide her not so unnoticeable smile, a flashback from his childhood involving wet sheets and pajamas came up into his mind. His face went red, as Paige started walking backwards in front of him.

"I- I was potty training!" He tried to defend himself, feeling even more embarrassed as his pathetic excuse made her burst out in a fit of giggles; he closed his eyes, faking irritation, when actually all he wanted to do was laugh along with her.

"I'll have so much blackmailing material by the end of this trip, _huggies_." Paige winked at him.

He threw his head back in exasperation.

"You're really enjoying this, aren't you?"

"What can I say? I have a thing for adorable, bed wetting cuties…"

Mike stopped in the middle of the street, looking back straight at her: her stomach fluttered again as the electricity in his blue orbs made her skin shiver. It was so cold outside, but Mike's looks were even more _efficient_ when it came to give her goosebumps.

'_It's those damn gorgeous eyes_' She had always used that as an explanation, but Mary's last words to her had decidedly influenced her thoughts about it and she was now subconsciously letting them affect the way she responded to his teasing stares. '_It must be that, what else could it be?_'

He smiled evilly, as he took a step closer.

"Don't - Michael Warren, don't you dare!" She screamed, as he launched himself in her direction, ready to tackle her onto the snow covered ground. She made a sprint run down the hill, Mike close on her trail.

"Run, _Paigie_! RUN!"

As they passed his family, he pointed at his sister, trying to sound as pissed as possible - but it really came out as a distorted laugh.

"You're next!"


End file.
